The History of Audiology as a Medical Profession

Before audiology: early hearing science 

Long before anyone called themselves an audiologist, physicians and scientists were grappling with how hearing works and what causes hearing loss. Here’s a timeline showing early discoveries in hearing science.

1500s — Early ear anatomy is mapped
Bartolomeo Eustachi describes the Eustachian tube, and Gabriele Falloppio maps key ear structures. These discoveries form the foundation of how we understand the ear today.

1600s–1700s — Scientists begin studying hearing loss
Researchers start exploring hearing loss as something that can be observed and potentially measured — not just described.

1800 — First experiment with electrical hearing
Alessandro Volta applies electrical stimulation to the ear and reports hearing a sound. This risky early experiment helped inspire technologies like cochlear implants more than a century later.

1819 — Hearing becomes a medical focus
Jean-Marc Gaspard Itard publishes one of the first major works on ear diseases, helping establish hearing loss as a field of medical study.

1885 — Early hearing tests are developed
Viktor Urbantschitsch introduces structured hearing tests using tuning forks. This work helped lay the groundwork for modern hearing tests.

Late 1800s–early 1900s — Sound becomes measurable
Alexander Graham Bell’s work with the telephone advances the understanding of sound and speech. Because Bell’s mother and wife were both deaf, he had a vested interest in making sound visible and measurable for people with hearing loss. These breakthroughs helped scientists begin measuring hearing in more precise ways.

The invention of hearing testing

Audiometry — the ability to measure hearing — became possible in the early 1900s with the development of electrical sound technology. Before that, hearing tests relied on tools like tuning forks and even watch ticks, which could only give rough estimates. In the early 1920s, the first electric audiometers were developed.

These devices could produce sounds at specific pitches and volumes, allowing hearing to be measured more accurately than ever before. This technology is the foundation of the hearing tests used in clinics today.

Researcher C.C. Bunch helped create one of the first practical audiometers and used it to study hearing across large groups of people. This was a genuinely transformative development: for the first time, it was possible to document precisely what a person could and could not hear, at what pitches, and at what volumes — and to compare those findings against a defined standard of normal hearing.

This led to the creation of the audiogram — a chart that shows how well you hear different sounds. Audiograms are still used today, largely unchanged, to diagnose hearing loss and guide treatment.

World War II and the birth of audiology 

While early technology made hearing measurable, World War II in the 1900s is what led to the creation of audiology as a clinical profession.

The scale of hearing damage sustained by military personnel during the war was extraordinary. Soldiers and airmen suffered sudden hearing loss due to high-intensity noise from artillery, aircraft engines, explosions, and small arms fire — often without meaningful hearing protection, which was poorly understood and rarely standardized at the time.

The need for specialized hearing care

By the end of the war, tens of thousands of veterans had hearing loss.

Existing medical providers — such as ear, nose, and throat (ENT) doctors and general physicians — were not equipped to handle this level of need. This moment led to the creation of a new type of specialist focused specifically on hearing care.

One of the key figures during this time was Raymond Carhart. He is often called the “father of audiology” because of his work with hearing-impaired veterans.

Carhart developed systematic protocols for evaluating and rehabilitating hearing-impaired veterans, trained new clinicians, and established the intellectual and clinical framework from which the profession would grow.

Another important contributor was Hallowell Davis. He conducted key research on how hearing works and improved hearing tests, which helped establish audiology as a science-based healthcare field.

Audiology becomes a formal profession

A profession is more than a set of skills — it requires shared standards, formal training, and clear credentials.

1948 — ASHA establishes professional standards

Researchers and clinicians founded the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), creating a unified professional home for audiologists and speech-language pathologists, ASHA also introduced the Certificate of Clinical Competence in Audiology (CCC-A), which requires supervised clinical experience and a passing score on a national exam.

1950s–1960s — University programs expand

University training programs in audiology expanded steadily through the 1950s and 1960s. At the time, a master’s degree was the standard requirement to become an audiologist, and graduate programs worked to build a shared body of knowledge covering areas like: acoustics, anatomy and physiology, diagnostic methods, hearing aid technology, and auditory rehabilitation.

1977 — ADA supports private practice and scope expansion

The Academy of Doctors of Audiology (ADA) was founded by nine audiologists to support private practice, advance professional hearing aid dispensing, and advocate for expanded scope of practice. The organization later helped develop and promote the Doctor of Audiology (Au.D.) degree, contributing to the profession’s transition to a doctoral-level standard.

Today, the ADA advocates for the expansion of scope of doctorate level audiologists everywhere. It is now the world’s largest professional organization of and for audiologists and has been the central force in advancing clinical standards and public policy advocacy.

The shift to doctoral-level training

One of the most important changes in modern audiology was the shift to doctoral-level training. For decades, audiologists only needed a master’s degree to practice. As hearing technology advanced and research improved, the field needed more specialized training.

Audiology also sought recognition alongside other healthcare professions that require doctoral degrees.

In the 1990s, the field began moving toward the Doctor of Audiology (Au.D.) as the standard degree.This transition required major changes, including:  redesigning academic programs, changing credentialing requirements, and educating  the public about  audiologists’ role.

By 2007, the Au.D. became the required entry-level degree in the United States. This change improved the quality of training, not just the title. Today’s audiologists receive more hands-on training and deeper clinical preparation.

How modern audiology has expanded beyond hearing loss 

Today, audiology covers much more than it did in the past. As research and technology have improved, audiologists now treat a wider range of conditions and patients beyond just hearing loss alone.

Modern audiologists commonly provide care for:

• Balance disorders. Also called vestibular conditions, these affect the inner ear and can cause dizziness or vertigo.
• Tinnitus. Ongoing ringing or noise in the ears, often treated with counseling and sound therapy.
• Pediatric hearing care. Including newborn hearing screenings and early intervention for children.

Researchers are also studying the relationship between hearing loss and brain health. Studies suggest that untreated hearing loss is associated with an increased risk of cognitive decline, social isolation, and depression. This research has expanded the role of audiologists and increased awareness of hearing health as part of overall health.

Advances in hearing aid technology

Audiology has evolved alongside hearing aid technology.

Early hearing aids were originally body-worn vacuum-tube devices, bulky and limited in their acoustic performance. The transistor revolution of the 1950s made aids smaller and more practical. Analog devices dominated through the 1970s and 1980s, and behind-the-ear hearing aids became increasingly refined. The shift to digital signal processing in the 1990s was transformative. Digital hearing aids allowed for better sound processing,  noise reduction, directional microphones, and more personalized fittings..

As technology improved, the role of audiologists expanded. They now:

• Select and fit devices
• Program hearing aids
• Verify performance
• Provide counseling and follow-up care

Today’s best hearing aids include Bluetooth connectivity, rechargeable batteries, smartphone integration, and artificial intelligence features. And with the FDA’s 2022 establishment of the over-the-counter hearing aid category, adults are now able to purchase hearing aids without a prescription, changing the landscape once again.

What does audiology look like today?

Audiology has evolved rapidly over the past century. It’s now practiced across hospitals, private clinics, Veterans Affairs medical centers, schools, research institutions, and telehealth platforms.

There are currently about 10,000 practicing audiologists in the U.S., and that number is expected to grow in the coming years.Driven in part by the aging of the U.S. population and the growing recognition of hearing health as an important dimension of overall wellness.

Hear from a practicing audiologist

Dr. Jessica Hinson, Au.D., a member of our medical advisory board, shares her perspective on where the field is going:

“I’m seeing a huge jump in technology across the market due to the continued rise of artificial intelligence and competition created by hundreds of over-the-counter (OTC) hearing devices. At the same time, the need for hearing care is growing across multiple generations, not just older adults.

As audiologists, we have an important responsibility to improve access to hearing healthcare by delivering patient-centered care using best practices—whether someone is using prescription hearing devices, OTC hearing aids, or personal sound amplification products (PSAPs).

As more people become aware of hearing loss and its associated effects, our role continues to expand. We’re not just diagnosing and fitting devices, we’re providing aural rehabilitation and ongoing support throughout a patient’s entire hearing journey.

I’m also hopeful that as hearing device adoption increases, more insurance providers will begin to offer meaningful reimbursement and coverage for hearing aids and related services, helping reduce barriers to care.”

Why this history matters for patients

Audiology may be a relatively young field, but its impact is significant.In the span of roughly eighty years, it has grown from improvised wartime rehabilitation to a sophisticated clinical profession with its own doctoral programs, professional organizations, subspecialties, and research base.

If you’re navigating a hearing concern today, you’re benefitting from decades of research and clinical progress.The audiologist who reviews your audiogram, programs your hearing aids, or evaluates your balance is drawing on a body of knowledge and clinical practice built, tested, and refined over generations.

That experience and expertise are what make modern hearing care more effective than ever before.